Markham Street Films has announced the world broadcast premiere of their new documentary, The Cholesterol Question, written and directed by award-winning Michael McNamara (Driven by Vision, Acquainted With The Night, 100 Films & A Funeral).
Cholesterol. The odds are high that you or someone close to you has been prescribed cholesterol lowering statins – the best selling pharmaceutical drug of all time. But more recent discoveries are contradictory and puzzling: roughly 50% of heart attack victims have “normal” cholesterol levels. And, many people with high cholesterol have healthy hearts.
So how much do we really know about cholesterol? For almost 50 years, the word has evoked one of our darkest modern fears: sudden death from heart attack. And, not surprisingly, heart health has become a modern day obsession. More than any other risk factor, cholesterol has loomed large in the public imagination and big industries have responded with trendy diets and medications.
But have all our attempts to lock this culprit up really made us healthier? Or have we gotten some of it wrong? And,what cutting-edge clues are scientists now following to help keep the silent killer at bay?
The Cholesterol Question seeks to answer these questions. A hard-hitting investigation into the heart of cholesterol’s controversial tale and cutting edge science on what causes heart attacks, The Cholesterol Question looks at individual cases from North America to Italy and questions doctors and scientists whose life work is dedicated to finding answers.
Aaron Holm’s story in The Cholesterol Question is telling. Despite his youth and high fitness levels, Aaron was diagnosed with hypercholesterolemia in his early 20s and was told by his doctor that he’d be lucky to live until 40, if he didn’t stick to treatment. He was prescribed statins – but after a scary experience with prior medication, Aaron decided he would bet on a healthy lifestyle instead.
For twenty years Aaron has stayed active and eaten well, but along the road to 40, he had no idea if his heart was a ticking time-bomb. On a visit to see St. Michael’s Hospital’s Dr. Beth Abramson, Aaron discovers that while he is largely free of plaque build-up, his artery walls are as thick as a man nearly twice his age.
The Cholesterol Question delves further into the heart of the matter visiting doctors and scientists doing cutting edge research.
At Stanford University Dr. Christopher Gardner reveals the dubious science behind our assault on dietary fat and cholesterol which many believe has only made us fatter and sicker. Dr. Barbara Roberts of Brown University questions the wholesale embrace of cholesterol-lowering statin drugs, while renowned Harvard University cardiologist Dr. Paul Ridker leads us through ground-breaking investigations into inflammation which may play as important a role as cholesterol in heart disease. At the Cleveland Clinic, Dr. Stanley Hazen is breaking new ground in how diet affects our heart health and scientists from McMaster University’s Population Health Research Institute explore if the secrets for stopping heart disease can be uncovered by mapping the human genome.
Told as a film-noir detective story with colourful, graphic novel-inspired animation, The Cholesterol Question deconstructs cholesterol’s fascinating story for the average viewer. It challenges conventional wisdom and travels to the frontiers of heart health research for new answers..
Watch Preview from CBC’s Nature of Things: